Sam Amidon will release his new album Salt River on January 24 via River Lea, which is a division of Rough Trade. The album was produced by Sam Gendel who also plays on it, with percussionist Philippe Melanson. It features 10 radical reinterpretations of songs by Lou Reed, Yoko Ono, Grey Larsen, Ornette Coleman, and more. “This album is a campfire, but the campfire is around Sam Gendel’s synthesizer,” says Amidon. “Or maybe it’s a journey through the corridors of my memory, if my memory was transplanted into Sam and Phil’s dreams.”
The album includes traditional folk song ” I’m On My Journey Home” which was released earlier this year, and Sam has just shared his version of Ornette Coleman’s “Friends And Neighbours ” which is playfully skronky. Listen below.
Sam has a few release shows lined up for Salt River, including Brooklyn’s Public Records on February 6. All dates are listed below.
Salt River
1 – Oldenfjord (originally by Grey Larsen)
2 – Three Five (originally traditional hymn Old Churchyard)
3 – Big Sky (originally by Lou Reed)
4 – Tavern (originally traditional American fiddle tune Salt River
5- Golden Willow Tree (originally from Appalachian ballad tradition)
6 – I’m On My Journey Home (originally from shape note singing tradition)
7 – Ask The Elephant (originally by Yoko Ono)
8 – Cusseta (originally from shape note singing tradition)
9 – Friends And Neighbours (originally by Ornette Coleman)
10 – Never (incorporates the fiddle tune “Her Long Hair Flowing Down Her Back” composed by Junior Crehan)
Sam Amidon: 2025 Tour Dates
January 25, 2025 – Dublin – Gate Theatre
January 29, 2025 – London – Moth Club **SOLD OUT**
January 30, 2025 – London – St Giles , The Crypt **SOLD OUT**
February 6, 2025- New York – Public Records
February 8, 2025 – Brattleboro – Stone Church
TBA Philadelphia – Booked for a future WXPN (Free At Noon)